Embodiments of the present specification relate generally to a system and method for image correction in an X-ray device, and more specifically to systems and methods for correcting image distortion due to detector tilt in a mobile X-ray device.
Imaging technologies such as X-ray imaging allow non-invasive acquisition of images of internal structures or features of a subject or an object. Digital X-ray imaging systems produce digital data which can be reconstructed into radiographic images. In digital X-ray imaging systems, radiation from a source is directed toward the subject in a medical application, a package or baggage in a security screening application, or a fabricated component in an industrial quality control inspection application. A portion of the radiation passes through the subject/object and impacts a detector. In volumetric imaging systems, such as computed tomography (CT) tomosynthesis or C-arm angiography systems, a portion of the radiation impinges on a detector array having a series of detector elements for each position of the radiation source. Scintillator elements in the detector convert the impinging radiation to light photons that are sensed by photo-detector elements of the detector. The detector includes a matrix of discrete picture elements or pixels and generates output signals based upon the quantity or intensity of the radiation impacting each pixel region. The output signals are subsequently processed to generate an image that may be displayed for review. These images are used to identify and/or examine the internal structures and organs within a patient's body, objects within a package or container, or defects such as cracks within a fabricated component.
Mobile X-ray units are used image incapacitated people at their bedside and also for imaging in intensive care units (ICUs). In mobile X-ray units, placement of the X-ray detector depends on many factors such as, but not limited to, mobility constraints of the subject and other space constraints. Images that are generated using data acquired with detector placement with such constraints disadvantageously result in tilt artefacts. These tilt artefacts adversely affect diagnosis and may result in the need for additional scans, thereby increasing associated costs and time. In case of medical applications, the additional scans also lead to an increase in radiation exposure and inconvenience to the subject.